Lamely overshadowed by Captain America’s “rebirth” (if he was ever dead at all), this issue resurrects Roman Dirge’s Lenore.  I can’t claim to be some old school fan who grew up reading Lenore, or who picked up the first issue back in the day,and made the appropriate smirks while cutting myself.    Shit, I’ve never even cut myself on purpose.  I mainly picked this up for the art.  And the art was fantastic.  Dirge’s humorous “goth”esque art toes the line between cute and insipid, but is nearly always on the cute side.

The first story is solid.  The origin of Lenore, and her new nemesis, Mortimer Fledge.  There’s an appropriate amount of pop culture references, and the art and writing speak volumes about the amount of fun Dirge is having.

The second poem reads like something Shel Silverstein’s younger, less talented brother, Chutzpah, might have written.  It tries very very hard to be a charming little poem about an umbrella, but the forced rhyme and the off meter had me squinting with poet rage. 

There were a few other one page stories, but, for me, the highlight of the issue was Samurai Sloth.  I mean, do I really have to say anything but Samurai Sloth?  It’s a Samurai.  And a Sloth.